Creative Writing Faculty

Aleksandar Hemon

Aleksandar Hemon headshot

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

About

Aleksandar Hemon is the author of the novels The World and All That It Holds, which won the 2023 Grand Prix de Litterature Americaine in France; and The Lazarus Project, which was a finalist for the 2008 National Book Award and National Book Critics Circle Award. His three collections of short stories include The Question of Bruno; Nowhere Man, which was also a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award; and Love and Obstacles. His other works include two books of nonfiction, My Parents: An Introduction and The Book of My Lives; the novel The Making of Zombie Wars, journalism, screenplays, and content for the Netflix original show Sense8. His works of fiction have been published in Norway, Italy, Germany, France and Slovenia, among others.

Born in Sarajevo, Hemon visited Chicago in 1992, intending to stay for a matter of months. While he was there, Sarajevo came under siege, and he was unable to return home. Hemon wrote his first story in English in 1995. He was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2003 and a “genius grant” from the MacArthur Foundation in 2004. Prior to Princeton, Hemon taught at Northwestern University and New York University.

 

News + Links

Deaton, Hemon named ‘Great Immigrants’ for contributions to American society” | Princeton University News, June 27, 2019

Interview with Aleksandar Hemon: ‘A book isn’t a car – not everything has to work’ | The Guardian, Jan. 21, 2023

Hemon on his new novel, The World and All That It Holds | NPR Weekend Edition, Jan. 21, 2023

Listen to Podcast: “What is it good for? (War)” featuring Aleksandar Hemon | Articulate Experience by PBS — Apple podcasts, 2023

Book Review: “The World and All That It Holds lives up to its sweeping title” | The Washington Post, Jan. 17, 2023

The World and All That It Holds wins the 2023 Grand Prix de Litterature Americaine in France | Fall 2023

Campus Address

Program in Creative Writing
New South Building, Floor 6
Office 611

Email Address

ahemon@princeton.edu

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